
Esme is a very quiet and reserved individual. She has a really hard time opening up and getting to know other people, and even if she does open up a bit she keeps her reserved side. This is mostly with older beans, or beans her age, as she feels more pressured in those kinds of environments. However, if you can catch her spending time with kids you'll quickly see that she has a whole other side to her. Esme will quickly lose her shy nature and turn into a seemingly outgoing bean. This is because she knows young children tend to be fairly nonjudgmental, and one of her fears is public humiliation/ embarrassment. The comfort of knowing that she wont be critiqued on who she is around kids really comforts her.
When she is around younger beans Esme can be quite childish and fun loving. There is nothing more that likes than to let go and have fun playing games with kids. She recognized this early in her life, and was able to stag a job of being an office assistant at a children's counseling office. When she use to work there, she would always neglect her paperwork and ended up playing with the kids that in came there. Obviously, she was fired from that position for failing to complete her duties, but soon rehired as a 'play mate' for this kids. This is probably one of her favorite jobs that she has been able to do (alongside her current job, coaching). She loved getting to know all the different kinds of kids from all different backgrounds that walked in there. Being able to play games and things with them made her feel like she was doing something special for them, and was overall more fulfilling than sitting around doing paperwork for the place.
In social situations with other beans Esme will quickly shut off. She makes her responses as short as possible, and if "yes" and "no" can be used in place of a sentence, that's what she will say. She has never been one to willing put herself in those situations, though. Most of the time she has a family member or friend with her, so it isn't as hard to talk to those she doesn't know well. If she is alone and put in that position, she will revert to those "yes" and "no" responses, or short choppy sentences. She knows that this can make her seem a bit uneducated, but she hopes that others would understand her anxiety. Most of the time they do, and take it easy on her, but there are a select few that have pushed her quite a bit. If she feels like she is under extremely high pressure, she will either walk away (despite feeling rude doing so), or figure out a way to push herself through it.
As a family member, Esme is a very loving person and a real people-pleaser. She goes out of her way to assure that everyone in her household is completely happy, even if that can be nearly impossible sometimes. Esme has a habit of putting other's needs way above her own, so she ends up neglecting herself. When she does this, her family members often quickly note it since it's an old habit of her's, and try to reason with her. This is one of the reasons why she loves her family so much, they are always there to support her and guide her back once she strays. She always feels like a really lucky bean when she comes home at the end of the day to such a kind family.
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Esme's current job is as a child's coach for multiple sports. She has always looked down upon a lot of coaching programs, but the one she is currently in shares many of the same vales that Esme has. One of those values being that winning isn't everything. This is one of the things she always tells her kids right before a game that, "as long as you play the game as a team, winning couldn't mean less." To her, putting up a good competition and working as a team is really important, and is one of the first things she says as she meets her new team.
Being a bean that had very few friends growing up, Esme likes to have little group activities besides practice to maybe encourage friendships to grow. This tends to be something along the lines of having everyone sit down and have a little discussion circle. She doesn't push anyone to participate, but she does make sure that everyone is in the circle, so they know what's going on. She's noticed that even the shy kids will pop in every now and then when something they are interested in pops up. Her teams tend to be a big family because of these little exercises, and that is something that Esme is always very proud of.
During games Esme is that 'proud parent,' always cheering for the kids and sending encouraging words their way. Sometimes she embarrasses the kids a bit, along with herself. The parents will often talk about her once seeing her coaching a game. Who wouldn't, though? She goes from being extremely shy while meeting the parents to up hopping around and cheering the kids on.
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A Day in The Life of a Coach[First person; Esme's POV]
I watched the basketball game with great anticipation. Anyone could easily tell that the kids were quickly losing motivation, and who could blame them. The score board read - "Home - 42 Guests - 12," us being the guests. So far this had turned out to be one of the hardest games for the kids, as the score easily showed. What could get them motivated to play after seeing that score? They all knew that how many points they got really didn't matter, but of course it's still going to be in their minds.
A skidding sound following a thud drew me from my thoughts. The other coach pulled the player (that I assumed had fallen) aside and bent down, taking to them. The coach gave a few rather harsh looking gestures, before pointing to the stands. A few seconds later a very tearful bean from the other team came and plopped down next to me on the stands. Head in hands she turned the other direction, clearly trying to cover up her face.
What happened? I asked myself,
the onetime I look away a player gets hurt. A loud whistle sounded that the game was continuing, but I was more concerned about the bean sitting beside me.
I give crouch down a bit and give her back a small rub, "hey, what happened out there?" Back still turned to me the young bean let out a small sniffle, "I fell." That part was a little bit obvious, the skidding sound was clearly her shoes and the thud must have been the actual contact. I give a concerned look, "no, I mean with your coach," The fall didn't really seem to have effected her too much, but after the talk with the coach she had burst into tears.
"My coach told me that I need to 'man up," she said, her words a bit hard to hear because of her hand in the way. "And that I shouldn't have tried to go get the ball, we would have gotten a point if I didn't touch it." Her nails dug into her head a bit, clearly, she was really upset with herself. "You already have 42 points, though, you guys are way ahead of my team. Your coach should just be proud of you for that. There's no reason why she should tell you to 'man up,' either." Coaches like her's were quite the rarity here. Most everyone that was with this program was kindhearted and understanding. She just must have been one of the ones that slipped though the system and got the job just for the money. At least that's the kind of feeling she was giving me. I'd noticed her pull a few kids aside, undoubtedly to chastise them for something they'd done.
I let out a small sigh, "well, a bad coach is nothing a little report can't fix. Hopefully they'll review her a little better, and if she turns out to be as bad for coaching this age group as I think, fired." The bean next to me dried her tears a little bit, turning her head to the side like she didn't really get what I had said, and I didn't expect her to. "Don't worry about it," I said, hoping to comfort her a bit, "hopefully you'll be able to have a better coach soon. Be sure to bring that up with your parents, I'm sure that the program will understand and get you transferred to someone new." She gave a small nod to me, seeming to calm down a bit. "Oh, I don't think I ever got your name, what might it be?" I asked. "It's Maura," she said, and surprisingly offered her hand out for a shake. I give her hand a small shake and smile, "well it's really nice to meet you, Maura. I'm Coach Esme, but you're free to just call me Esme." Maura gave a faint hint of a smile and nodded, "nice to meet you."
The whistle signalling halftime sounded, and the whole team came rushing over to the stands, looking defeated. I turn away from Maura and walk to the team, "aw, come on guys, you are all playing so well! What is with the all the frowns?" I'd managed to steal a few glances at the game while I was talking to Maura, and just like I'd said, they were playing really well. "But we're getting creamed," one of the older members on the team said. "What have I always told you guys?" I asked, and in union they responded, "winning doesn't matter as long as you play as a team." I give a smile, "that's right. And were you guys working as a team?" Another response in union, "Yes mam." I give a small chuckle, "good, then just do your best and have fun this quarter. I've got a little something special for you all once the game is over." That seemed to get them to perk up quite a bit. "Now get something to drink and take a break for a bit," I tell them.
I reach under the bleachers and pull out my old white ice chest that I've been using for years. Popping the lid open, I gesture for the kids to grab either a Gatorade or water. The large majority of them rush for the Gatorade, with only a select few choosing water. I look back at the stands, surprised to find that Maura didn't go back to her side to sit with her team. I pick up a Gatorade bottle and walk back to the stands as my team does the same. "Here you go," I say to Maura, handing the Gatorade bottle to her. She stutters for a moment before getting her words out, "t-t-thank you," seeming surprised that I offered her something.
I sit back down beside her. "Are you going to ask your coach if you can play after halftime?" She gave a small mumble in response, "I don't know if she wants me to play . . ." I sigh, clearly this coach has taught her kids wrong. "It doesn't matter if she wants you to play or not, what matters is if you want to play. So doo you want to play?" Looking down at the ground, Maura gave a small nod. I smile, "then go over there and tell her that you want to play." Hesitantly she gets up and slowly walks over to her coach. The coach almost looks disappointed to see her, but gives a nod in response to Maura's question. Even from here I can see the smile on her face as she was told that she could play. The whistle blew again, signalling that halftime was over.
This time, instead of cheering on just my team, I cheered on both teams. I'd never really thought to do that, but who knows. Maybe someone on the other team will need the extra encouragement.
Marua is owned by me
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:.: - By me